The award was instituted in the year 1991–92 to supply the lack of a supreme national accolade in the field of sports. Predating the RGKR are the Arjuna awards that have always been given to outstanding sportspersons ineach of many sporting disciplines every year. The Khel Ratna was devised to be an overarching honour, conferred for outstanding sporting performance, whether by an individual or a team, across all sporting disciplines in a given year.
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award 2014:
None
Arjuna Award Winners 2014:
| Winner | Sports |
| Abhishek Verma | Archery |
| Tintu Luka | Athletics |
| H.N. Girisha | Para-Athletics |
| V. Diju | Badminton |
| Geethu Anna Jose | Basketball |
| Jai Bhagwan | Boxing |
| R. Ashwin | Cricket |
| Anirban Lahiri | Golf |
| Mamta Pujari | Kabaddi |
| Saji Thomas | Rowing |
| Heena Sidhu | Shooting |
| Anaka Alankamony | Squash |
| Tom Joseph | Volleyball |
| Renubala Chanu | Weightlifting |
| Sunil Kumar Rana | Wrestling |
Dronacharya award:
| Winner | Sports |
| Mahabir Prasad | Wrestling |
| Lifetime Achievement: | |
| N. Lingappa | Athletics |
| G. Manoharan | Boxing |
| Gurcharan Singh Gogi | Judo |
| Jose Jacob | Rowing |
Dhyan Chand award:
| Winner | Sports |
| Gurmail Singh | Hockey |
| K.P. Thakkar | Swimming-diving |
| Zeeshan Ali | Tennis |
Tenzing Norgay Awards:
| Category | Winner |
| Land adventure | Subedar Jagat Singh, Passang Tenzing Sherpa |
| Air adventure | MWO Surender Singh |
| Lifetime achievement | Wg. Cdr. (retd) Amit Chowdhury |
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy:
Punjabi University, Patiala.
Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar:
| Winner | Category |
| Oil and Natural Gas Corporation | employment of sports persons and sports welfare measures |
| Jindal Steel Works | community sports“identification and nurturing of budding/young talent |
| Guru Hanuman akhara | establishment and management of sports academies of excellence |
| Child Link Foundation of India“Magic Bus | other forms of sports activities not covered in the categories mentioned in the schemes |
